Federal Government and International Fund for Agricultural Development-Value Chain Development Programme (FG/IFAD-VCDP) has trained 105 rice farmers in Niger State on improved agronomic practices to help boost production and strengthen food security. The one-day training took place on Thursday in Washi community, Lavun Local Government Area of the state.
The programme is part of the Federal Government and Niger State Government IFAD-assisted VCDP-Additional Financing, which aims to expand Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) to new LGAs that recently joined the platform. According to Nigeria Startup News, the intervention is designed to support farmers with updated knowledge and techniques that have already improved rice yields in other participating areas.
Hajiya Hadizat Isah, State Programme Coordinator of the VCDP, said the initiative was created to equip farmers in Lavun with modern skills that are already making a difference in locations like Wushishi, Katcha, Mokwa and Edati. She explained that the VCDP had been carrying out similar trainings across the state for more than three weeks, and Lavun was added because it is a newly admitted LGA under the programme.
“We are here to train farmers, and although the exercise started over three weeks ago, we extended it to this community because Lavun is a new Local Government that joined the VCDP platform. Our farmers in Wushishi, Katcha, Mokwa and Edati are now doing three to four cycles of production per year because of our intervention, and we want these farmers to replicate same,” she said.
Isah said the training covered key areas of dry-season rice farming such as site selection, land preparation, seed selection, nursery establishment, transplanting and water and soil management. She added that trained extension agents would continue to guide farmers through their production cycle. Inputs and equipment would also be provided to participants at subsidised rates.
She also said that VCDP had started constructing aggregation centres and market stores in Lavun to strengthen storage and marketing systems. The communities involved are expected to contribute 10 per cent in-kind through land or labour.
Prof. Abigael Girji, the lead consultant for the training from the Federal University of Technology, Minna, said her team had visited four LGAs, including Edati, Katcha, Lavun and Mokwa, to deliver dry-season GAP instruction and follow up on field activities. She highlighted the importance of proper site selection and the use of improved seed varieties.
“We advised them to choose sites close to water sources because dry-season farming relies heavily on irrigation and use of viable seeds, and apply fertiliser, herbicides and water at the right time,” she said.
Girji said farmers were also encouraged to keep accurate farm records and approach agriculture as a business enterprise. Some participating farmers, Mallam Mohammed Shaba and Mallam Suleiman Idris, expressed appreciation, saying the training exposed them to new methods capable of improving their yield.
